Night's Shadow
by FreeFantasySky
Summary: Have you ever wondered what made Shadow Temple the way it was? How it was built? How it was cursed? A young man starts to go mad, murdering those he works with. Together, two people must stop him and fight the growing evil inside the Royal Families Burial Chamber. I suck at summaries :P
1. Prologue

**(Authors Note)  
Hi guys! Um, this is set waaaay before the events of The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time. It's about the making of Shadow Temple and I think I might also put something about the Well in there :) Sorry if any facts are wrong. It _is _fan made ^_^ ENJOY! And please review!)  
**

**_Prologue_**

_It was a cold, dark night, with the hint of a storm in the air. It was not yet raining but bright flashes of lighting and the distant rumble of thunder could be heard.  
A young boy, around 11 or 12, hurried through the small town, a brown paper package clutched in his arms. His mother had sent him out to get some wheat for making bread, with the harsh warning that if he was late, he would be severely punished.  
As he ran through the empty streets, he noticed something peculiar happening in the direction of the graveyard. His steps faltered as he tried to see what was going on. A soft, pale green light was slowly pulsing behind the brick houses. He walked towards the glow, fascinated.  
He came to the lane that would take him into the graveyard. The young boy hesitated. Many a strange tale had been told about people who had stepped onto this land. Stories of young boys (like himself) going insane and murdering their families. Whispers of men being so mutilated, no-one could recognize them. Of course, this boy's mother had scoffed at the tales. 'Just silly rumors spread around to scare people from going out at night,' she had told him. 'No truth in any of it.' Despite her words, the small boy didn't want to take any risks. And besides, his mother would be wanting him home with the wheat. If he was late again, he knew a good thrashing would be in store for him.  
Just as he turned away, a strange feeling overcame him. The urge to walk right into that dark lane overpowered him and his feet began to carry him forward, into the darkness. As the light got brighter, his thoughts got more muddled. Visions of towns burning, people screaming and a large, pure black shadow arising from the ground, engulfing the entire town. The boy gasped as he was freed from the visions and the strange pulling sensation. His legs shook and he almost fell to his knees at the sight before him. He was now at the entrance to the graveyard, standing right beside the deserted grave-keepers hut.  
A large Poe was floating near the back of the land and the source of the green light was something in front of it. It's back was to the small boy but he crept behind the dilapidated hut just in case. As he hid, his foot knocked a metal pail and it clattered against the wooden fence marking the perimeter. The sound made the boy wince and he cautiously peeked at the Poe. It was too busy to notice. 'Get out of here while you can,' he thought. 'Before that thing finds you here.' He took a deep breath and glanced around the hut once again. A jolt of fear ran down his spine as he looked at the empty space. The Poe had disappeared. He had heard stories of Poe's disappearing and reappearing at will and he shivered from fear. How would he know where it was now? He should have never of come here. 'At least it's better than it being here and knowing where I am,' he said to himself, taking a few deep breaths to calm his racing heart. 'Hopefully it's left and I can get out of here easy.' Having a bit more confidence, he stepped out and looked around. It was empty and the green light had faded away too. Not a sign of the Poe anywhere. He started to back away, keeping his eyes on the graveyard. Suddenly, everything went cold and a feeling of dread came over him.  
He clutched his package tighter and slowly turned around. He came face-to-face with the Poe he had seen earlier. Its red eyes glowed, seeming to float on its darkened face. He could see, now that he was close to it, the Poe was larger than a normal graveyard Poe. It was probably even larger than the Big Poe's. It started laughing in a high pitched giggle. 'Too bad for you, it won't be easy getting out of here before I'm done with you.' It said, floating closer. Its tone was almost polite, conversational but with a hint of malice and glee. The young boy didn't know what to do. Here he was, face-to-face with a Poe, a spirit filled with hatred and spite, and his legs had frozen. His whole body was on lock-down mode. All he could do was stare the thing in the face (if it had one) whilst it inched closer and closer, blocking his way out. He gulped, willing his legs to move.  
As it came closer, he did the only thing he could think of. Run. Even though a little voice in the back of his head was telling him it was the wrong way, he ran towards the edge of the graveyard, dodging grave-stones until he came to an end at a stone wall at least six meters high and traveling all the way around the outside of the fence. The Poe's high pitched laugh sounded behind him and he turned around to see its lantern floating towards him. It had no need to hurry. It knew it had got him where it wanted him. He gasped in shallow, sobbing breaths, knowing there was no escape. The Poe shimmered into view. 'The foolishness of humans makes them easy targets. How naive and weak they are to be taken over by a simple calling spell,' it said, all traces of politeness gone, replaced by a more sinister, evil tone. 'That's why it's so fun to play with them. Leading them astray until they can't find their way home ever again,' the spirit laughed, a dark, wicked sound. 'But now is no time for games. You will be my little experiment. A vessel of sorts for my master.' As the Poe stopped speaking, the ground beneath him started to glow green. This was not the soft, pale glow he saw before, but a vibrant, blinding light. It grew larger until it was covering both him and the Poe. A dim humming filled his ears and the horrible visions of fire and death flashed before his eyes once more. 'Please…stop,' the young boy moaned, dropping his package and clutching his head. The Poe laughed as the light got brighter and the dull humming grew into a loud roar. The boy screamed and fell to the floor, feelings of blood lust, terror and anger washing over him. His vision turned red.  
'Somebody, HELP ME!' _


	2. Chapter 1

**Shadow Temple Chapter 1 Fan Fiction**

'Wood for sale!' The young merchant called out. 'Firewood for only 50 rupees! 50 rupees for 100 logs! 100 for 200!' She had to shout at the top of her lungs to be heard over the roar of the market. Other merchants were advertising their goods or bargaining with buyers. Even though it was raining, quite heavily too, buyers and sellers still came to Hyrule Market to haggle for items on sale. Rain, hail or shine, nothing would stop Market Day. Basically, every day was Market Day, but different merchants came on different days. Market Day was just a day where all the merchants came together and put on special sales. A lot more people came on this day, so you always knew business was going to be good. But for Sayomi Hiroshi, business was evading her on this particular day. She didn't know whether it was the rain or the charm and appeal of the other sellers, but she had gotten a grand total of no customers. Or maybe it was the fact that the Hylians lacked the need for wood. 'Wood for sale!' she called out once more. 'Special price, only 50 rupees for 100 logs! One day only!' It was useless. All the screaming in the world wouldn't get this tough crowd buying. 'Stupid, pathetic people. Thinking that they're too good for my wood.' Sayomi grumbled. She was tired and sore from standing up all day and her small thatch covering had a leak so rain dripped steadily onto her back, soaking her. She was _not_ in a good mood. She sat down on the damp ground, already too wet to care, and rested her arm on a log. Placing her chin in her hand, she watched the different coloured fabrics moving in front of her as people rushed to different stalls and shops. She thought she had gotten a good place to set up her stall. It was right next to the Bomchu Alley and the Archery shop. But no-one took any notice of the 19 year-old girl sitting amongst a pile of logs. Suddenly, two pairs of leather boots appeared in front of her. Someone cleared their throat and she looked up. Standing in front of her was a young man with spikey, black hair and green eyes. His clothes were dripping wet and he was slightly shivering. 'Can I help you?' Sayomi asked, standing up.  
'Um, yeah. Uh, how much are you selling the wood for?' The man asked. His voice was soft and it took a few seconds before Sayomi realized what he was saying. 'Oh! Yeah, I'm selling at 50 rupees for 100 logs.' She said.  
'Perfect. I'll take 2000 logs please.'  
'Of course! That'll be-wait. 2000?' Sayomi repeated, surprised.  
'Um, y-yeah.' The young man seemed nervous and shuffled his feet. He kept crossing and uncrossing his arms and it was really starting to annoy her. She just wanted to grab his arms and keep him still. 'That'll be 1000 rupees.' She said, crossing her own arms. She was a bit suspicious. Did this man really have the money to pay for this? But sure enough, he pulled out a large brown sack and started rummaging around. 'Would you like it delivered or-'  
'I'll take them thanks.' He interrupted, handing out the rupees. She took them and started to count. There were 10 yellow rupees. 1000 all up. 'Are you sure you want to take them by yourself? I could deliver them if you wanted.' She said, placing the rupees in her empty money bag. 'No, no.' It's fine. I need them now anyway.' He replied.  
'Well, do you have a horse or at least something to help you carry them?'  
'Uh,' he said, scratching the back of his head. 'Not really.'  
'It's settled then. I'll come with you and get my horse to carry it for you.' Sayomi said, about to call for her horse, Plum. 'You really don't need to-'he was cut off by a piercing whistle from Sayomi. A faint whinny answered it and people jumped out of the way as a spotted mare galloped up to the wood stand. Sayomi grabbed its halter after patting its mane and led it around to the back where an old, wooden cart waited. She stopped and patted the bay's mane. Hooking up the cart to the horse, she turned to the young man. 'If you could, can you please help me get the logs into the cart?' The man nodded and rushed to help. After they had finished loading the cart with exactly 2000 logs, they got ready to leave. A cold wind blew freezing rain on them and Sayomi's already drenched hair slapped across her face, getting in her mouth and eyes. She sputtered and tried to push her blond hair out of her face. The man tried to hold back a laugh but let loose a small snicker. She glared at him and looked away, shoulders shaking with silent laughter. She grabbed her horses' reins and began to walk out of the market with the man following behind. The rain had lessened to a drizzle and some of the clouds had thinned, allowing blue sky to peek through. The horses' hooves clattered over the wooden drawbridge and stepped onto Hyrule Field. Sayomi took a deep breath and smiled. She loved the smell of rain on grass. 'Um, thanks for the help. I really appreciate it you know.' The young man said behind her. 'Oh it's no problem at all!' she smiled at him over her shoulder. 'It would have been extremely hard for you to have carried it alone, especially in this weather.' She stopped suddenly, making Plum snort in annoyance and the cart creak. 'By the way, where are we taking these to?' She asked, turning to look at him.  
'Oh, right. To Death Valley, over there.' He said, pointing towards the tiny village at the foot of Death Mountain. 'Sure but it's going to be hard bringing the horse and cart up those steps so we'll have to make a few trips back and forth. What do you need these for anyway? Must be something big if you need this much.' She said.  
'That's ok. And I work on a building site up there and we're running out of wood so my Boss sent me to get more wood.'  
'By yourself?'  
'Um, yeah. I guess they couldn't really spare anyone else and I don't do much up there anyway.'  
Sayomi frowned and kept walking. 'Wow…rough.'  
'Why rough?' The young man asked, confused.  
'Well, it kind sounds like he's trying to get rid of you. But that's just my opinion.'  
'I wouldn't be surprised, if that's true. Knowing him…' he trailed off.  
They continued on in silence for a while, neither saying anything. The still falling rain was cold and made Sayomi shiver. She pressed closer to Plum, trying to get some warmth from the horse's body. Plum nickered softly and nudged her palm, her hot breath warming Sayomi's hand. Plum was doing so well. She wasn't used to pulling this much weight in this weather. Sayomi usually got help with sales from her Uncle Shin and his mare, Buttercup, so Plum never really had to carry this much wood. They came to the small, stone bridge that led over the river in front of Death Valley. The river led straight from Zora's Fountain down to Hyrule Castle and was pure with clear, sparkling water. They crossed the bridge quickly and headed for the wide staircase that went up to Death Valley. 'Well, here we are.' Sayomi announced, stopping. She walked around to the back of the cart and started lifting out some logs. The man helped her and took five logs before heading towards the staircase. Sayomi herself could only carry three and struggled after him. This was going to be a long day.  
She followed him up the steps until they came to the entrance of the small village. He headed straight in without pausing but Sayomi took the time to catch her breath and take in the sight before her. Two large fences, measuring about three meters high, stood in front of her. There was a large gap between the two fences for people to walk through and a large sign between the two fences, proudly saying 'Welcome to Death Valley.' A bit cheery for such a frightening name. The village was named so because it was situated right at the foot of Death Mountain. The only creatures who lived up in Death Mountain were the Gorons, said to be the holders of the Spiritual Stone of Fire. Past the fences was the main village. There was so much construction going on she didn't know how she was going to find her customers site. Houses were being built everywhere and there were half built buildings dotted around the place. There was only about two or three houses that were whole. At the very back of the village, there was a very tall construction taking place. Sayomi wondered if it was going to be a clock tower of some sorts. There was also quite a lot of stairs in the village. Ahead of her, to the left, there was a large staircase going up the side of a large rise, connecting the lower village with the upper village. There were stairs leading up to houses that seemed like they were built right into the mountain, and there were stairs leading up to smaller rises with some houses that were being built. She really hopped that she didn't have to walk up any more stairs to get to the right construction site. Sayomi staggered into the village, trying to find the young man. She couldn't see him amidst the crowd of builders and villagers and she started to panic. She was in a strange, unfamiliar village, was carrying a heavy stack of logs and had lost her customer. 'You could always just go back to the cart and wait for him to come back for the rest of the wood.' She said to herself. She tried to head back the way she came but the throng of people pushed her back, into the middle of the village. She stopped trying to fight them as she was afraid that she would drop the wood, and resolved to find an un-crowded place of the village to wait for the young man. Spotting an empty bit of land on a rise, she pushed her way towards it. Breaking out of the crowd, she climbed a few stairs and then sat down, exhausted. Leaving the logs in her lap, she leaned back on her hands and sat back to watch the people work. From what people had told her, Sayomi assumed that the small town would be almost deserted and quiet. She had heard strange stories about this place that made people become suspicious and not go near the town. But these stories just made Sayomi curious and now seeing the village with her own eyes, she realized most of these rumours were false. The town was bustling with activity. Builders shouted orders to one another and villagers hurried around, going into shops and houses or stopping outside to chat with friends. She thought that this looked like a lovely, lively place to live and started to think that she might also want to live here. Once all the construction was done anyway. She started to relax and day dream, completely forgetting why she was here in the first place. She could have drifted off if it wasn't for someone grabbing her shoulder. She jumped and made the logs roll off in all directions. She twisted around and looked up at the person who disturbed her. A pair of bright green eyes stared back at her. She leapt up and dusted herself off. 'Where have you been?' She accused, glaring at the young man. 'I've been looking for you everywhere! How could you leave me alone in a strange place like this?'  
He looked a bit sheepish and scratched the back of his head.  
'Sorry, I kind of got carried away and just went on ahead. I apologise.' He said, looking at the ground.  
'Hpmh,' she said, crossing her arms. 'This is gonna cost you extra you know.'  
'What?!' he said, looking up.  
She sighed and shook her head. 'No. I'm not that mean. I was joking so c'mon. Let's take this wood to where it needs to go.' She replied, picking up the run-away logs. Before she could pick up the last one, the man grabbed it and started walking away. 'Come on. We have wood to deliver.' He called over his shoulder. She ran up beside him, cradling the wood in her arms. 'I could have carried that you know.' She grumbled.  
'I know, but I'll get into trouble with my boss for not helping a lady.' He replied, leading them towards the large construction she had saw earlier.  
'Sounds like a gentleman.' She said.  
'I should hope so,' the man laughed. 'He's got a fiancé after all.'  
'Really?' she said, looking up as they passed the construction and continued on into a small alley way lined by two large fences. 'What exactly are they building back there?' Sayomi asked the young man.  
'Don't know,' he replied. 'I think it's like a windmill or something.'  
_Huh, so not a clock tower, _Sayomi thought. As they continued on, the path slowly curved around to the right and then opened up to a wide graveyard. Workmen and carpenters were scattered around the area, giving orders, talking to one another, comparing different material or digging and hammering away at the construction site at the back of the graveyard. Sayomi stepped out next to what looked to be a run-down grave-keepers' hut. 'Isn't this kinda disrespectful? You know, digging up a graveyard?' she whispered to the young man beside her. He either ignored her or didn't hear her and waved to someone with his free hand. 'Hey! Blake!' he shouted. A short builder came jogging up to him.  
'Hey Aki! More wood?' The man called Blake asked, looking at the log in his hands. 'What? That it? How much did you order ya nut?' he accused. Aki didn't say anything but stepped aside and waved his hand toward Sayomi. Blake looked at her and then at the logs. '2 more logs. Great. That's definitely gonna help us build this thing.' He said, voice heavy with sarcasm. Aki rolled his eyes. 'This is…' he said, looking at Sayomi. 'Oh, I'm Sayomi.' She said, giving Blake an awkward smile. 'She's the provider of the wood. She has a lot more logs back in her cart. We need some men to come help get the rest.' He explained. Understanding dawned on Blake's face. 'Ahh, ok. Where's the cart and how many men do you need?'  
'Just outside the town and that depends on whether you want here now or now.'  
Blake nodded and turned to the construction site.  
'Oi! Hiro, Jun and Kieth, c'mere! He shouted at three workers. They hurried over and listened as Blake explained what he wanted them to do. 'Yes sir!' They said in unison, turning toward Sayomi and Aki. Aki handed his log to Blake and motioned for Sayomi to do the same. She gave Blake her logs but he struggled under the weight and dropped a few. 'Oh! I'm sorry!' she exclaimed, trying to help but he waved her away.  
'No, no don't worry about me, you go and help the others.' He said, setting down the logs on the ground. She nodded and turned to follow Aki but Blake caught her arm. 'Um, hey. I've just been wondering. What's your last name?' he asked her. She blinked and stared at him for a while.  
'Oh, right, um. It's Hiroshi.' She replied. 'Why do you want to know?'  
He ignored her question and began muttering under his breath, wringing his hands and looking around nervously. 'Hey, are you ok?' Sayomi asked, reaching out to touch his arm. Suddenly, his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her close. Her face was just inches from his and he glared at her. 'You better watch your back missy.' He whispered, tightening his grip on her arm and making her wince. 'Not everyone here is what they seem. Don't trust everyone you meet.'  
'Does that apply to you too?' Sayomi asked, staring him straight in the eye.  
'Maybe, but the main point is that this place ain't safe for people like you. You'd do well not to come here again.' He said, taking a step back and letting go of her arm. None of the other workers seemed to have seen what had just happened. She rubbed her wrist and started to walk away. 'You're in danger as long as you're in this town little girl!' Blake called after her. She ignored him and kept walking. 'Creepy old man.'


	3. Chapter 2

Sayomi met up with Aki and the three other builders at the bottom of the village steps, next to her cart. Two of the builders rushed past her with an arm full of logs as she descended the steps. She was amazed at how they could carry all that wood and run up those stairs at the same time. Just before she got to the bottom, the last builder tried to hurry after the others, but tripped and fell. His logs went everywhere and he tried to get up to retrieve them. Sayomi picked up two and handed them over to him. 'Here, do you need any help with them?' she asked him. The poor man was clearly embarrassed and was blushing madly as he retrieved the rest of the logs. 'Thank you and I'll be fine. Thanks once again.' he said, not looking at her and quickly, but carefully, walked up the stairs. Sayomi smiled and continued down to where Aki was waiting. 'He seemed sweet.' she said to him.  
'Who, Ken? Yeah, he's pretty cool but as you can see, he's a bit of a klutz.' Aki replied, shaking his head.  
'I like him.' Sayomi said. Aki scoffed and started unloading some logs. She went around to help him, grabbing three and turning to walk up the stairs. Aki followed behind her, carrying five. Before they reached the village, Sayomi remembered something. 'Um, Aki? I've been meaning to ask you something. It's about Blake.' she said, waiting for him at the top of the stairs. Aki looked at her strangely for a moment before joining her at the top of the stairs. 'Yeah, what is it?' he asked cautiously.  
'Could you tell me about him?'  
'Why do you want to know about him?'  
'Well, when you all left, he said some strange things to me. Stuff like, 'Watch your back' and 'Don't trust everyone you meet.'' Sayomi explained, walking beside Aki through the town. Aki growled something under his breath and looked around. They were near a small alley way between two buildings and he pushed her in. Dropping his logs on a wooden crate, he put two hands on either side of her shoulders and pinned her against the wall. 'Forget everything he said. Forget everything you heard about this place. In fact, it would be better if you leave. Leave and never come back here again.' he whispered furiously. Sayomi was extremely confused. These two men were acting as if she had done something wrong. They were acting like they wanted to hide something from her. 'So you're basically saying that I should just forget about this place.' she asked him, clutching her logs.  
'Yeah, I guess you could put it that way.'  
She scoffed. 'As if. Look there's either something wrong with this place or it's just you. I don't care what you tell me, I'm not buying it. And I'm certainly not going to walk away like nothing happened.' she said, pushing him back. He grabbed her arm as she went past her. 'You're making a massive mistake.' he hissed.  
'Get off me. The only person making the mistakes here is you. Now if you don't mind, I have a job to do and I'd like to get back to finishing it.' Sayomi said, ripping her arm out of his grip and stalking past him. 'What is wrong with these people? Can I not have a simple conversation without being threatened?' she muttered to herself as she marched to the graveyard. She avoided eye-contact with everyone there as she deposited the wood in a wheelbarrow filled with logs. She turned to leave when someone grabbed her arm. _Not again,_ she thought. 'What?' she snapped, whirling around to glare at the person who grabbed her. She came face to face with an extremely attractive young man. Blond, spiky hair framed a tanned face and blue eyes. 'That's not a very nice way to greet your fiance.' he grinned.  
'Haku!' Sayomi exclaimed, jumping on him. He chuckled and steadied her.  
'Whoa there.' he said gently.  
She buried her face in his shoulder. 'I haven't seen you in so long!' she said, hugging him tightly.  
'Tell me about it! I've missed you so much!' he laughed, spinning her around. She squealed and clung on to him. 'Oi Haku! Get a room!' someone shouted. Still laughing, Haku set her down to shout a reply. 'You're just jealous Blake!'  
The short man walked towards them, looking slightly annoyed and amused at the same time. Sayomi glared at him but her smiled right back as if nothing had happened before. She scoffed and looked away. 'This isn't a place to fool around,' Blake said, softly punching Haku on the arm. 'This is a building site and we're running on a tight schedule. So take your silliness somewhere else or get on with your job.' he lightly scolded Haku. Haku clutched his heart dramatically. 'You wound me old man. And that was quite powerful. Rehearsing for when you take over my job?' Haku teased.  
'I'm not old. I've still got a few ripe years left in me. And I might as well take over your job at the rate you're going.'  
'Pfft, you wish. And there can only be one Boss around here. I hope you're not planning for a mutiny.'  
'Wait,' Sayomi interrupted. 'You're the Boss?' she asked Haku.  
'Indeed he is. But he's a rotten one. Never gets anything done by himself. And when he does, it's rubbish. This constructions never going to get finished.' Blake sighed, shaking his head.  
'Stop worrying Blake. I'm going to finish this thing and you'll see. It'll be the best darn graveyard ever made. And I always finish what I start. Isn't that right Sayomi?' Haku said suggestively, wrapping his arms around her waist. 'Why didn't you tell me you were in charge of this thing?!' Sayomi said, ignoring his advance and crossing her arms. Haku sighed, defeated. 'Cause I didn't think that you'd be interested. Any way it's not that big of a deal.' he said, letting her go.  
'Not that big of a deal? My gosh Haku, this is a huge thing! and of course I'd be interested!' she exclaimed, hitting his chest and making him step back. He laughed and put up his hands in defense. 'Ok, ok. I'm sorry. I'll tell you next time!'  
'You better!' Sayomi growled, poking him in the chest. Blake cleared his throat and the couple turned to look at him. 'Sorry to interrupt your little lovers quarrel but we have more pressing matters to attend to.' he explained, gesturing to something behind them. They turned to see Aki and the other builders standing at the graveyards entrance, holding a pile of logs each.'Ah! There you all are!' Haku said, putting a hand around Sayomi's shoulders. 'Well, put them over there and I'll send a few more men to go and help you.' he ordered. They complied and quickly did as they were told. Sayomi went to go help them but Haku stopped her by grabbing her waist. 'Where are you going in such a hurry?' he chuckled.  
'To help of course.'  
'No. They're fine. So stay here with me and I'll show you around the place.'  
'But Ha-' she was cut off as he suddenly kissed her.  
'I haven't seen you in almost a month and you're already trying to run away from me?' he whispered, one hand cradling her face, the other wrapped around her waist. She was blushing like mad. Every-one was watching them and she felt extremely self-conscious. She let her head fall on his shoulder. 'Sorry.' she whispered.  
'What are you saying sorry for silly? Now come on, there's so much I want to show you!' he said, eagerly pulling her hand, forcing her to follow him. He told a few more builders to go help the others whilst leading her away. She looked back to give Ken and the others an apologetic look but instead her eyes met Aki's. He was looking at her strangely. His expression was a mix of confusion and...sorrow? Was he feeling sorry for what he said to her earlier? She turned her head away sharply, wanting to show him that she wasn't going to forgive him any time soon. She aimed for dramatic effect but ended up getting a sore neck from turning a little too sharply.  
Haku showed her so many different things, the actual construction site, people and what looked to her like a blue print or a map of what they were trying to build. Haku explained to her that they were trying to make it as extravagant as wanted to do this as it was going to be made for the Royal Family and those closest to the family, their guardians, _The Shadow Folk, _or more commonly known as the _'Sheikah'. _  
Sayomi found it a bit odd as, currently, there was no Royal Family and the Shiekah had all been dead for years. Or so they say. The Shiekah were told to be strange and mysterious folk. No-one knew much about them. Not even the Royal Family. And because of this, Sayomi believed that they were out there somewhere, still alive, waiting for someone to ascend the throne as the rightful King of Hyrule. Maybe they were even living as normal Hylians, raising their children and biding their time in villages like this. Sayomi kept these thoughts to herself as she knew she would get laughed at if she told anyone.  
She listened to Haku's explanations and took in as much as she could. Especially when it came to being introduced to the builders. She tried to remember their names but of course she got some mixed up and had to ask again what their names were more than once.  
By the end of the day, she was utterly exhausted and craved the warmth of her Uncle's fireplace. Finally, when Aki reported that all the logs had been collected, she could go home. Haku asked her if she would be able to come back the next day but she declined, saying she had a lot of work to do around the farm where she lived and worked. Saying a good bye and good night to everyone, she left. The village was a lot more quiet, the builders had stopped working for the night and only a few people were roaming the streets. She descended the village steps and walked over to where Plum was grazing. Patting the horses neck, she grabbed the reins and started to lead her towards the bridge that crossed the river. Before she reached it though, something shimmered out of the corner of her eye and she turned around. The setting sun was shining in her eyes and she had to squint to see but she could still make out the ghostly figure. A few metres away from her, a Poe hovered next to the river, in the shade of a tree. It was looking right at her and was grinning evilly. She shivered and turned around, walking quickly away, hoping that it wouldn't follow. But of course, as soon as she reached the bridged, it materialized in the middle of the crossing, blocking her path. 'What's a young girl like you doing out here at this time?' it asked, not bothering to hide the hunger in it's voice. Sayomi started to panic. She had left her bow and quiver back at home and she had nothing to protect herself. Plum started whipping her head up and down, trying to get free. Sayomi had a firm grip on the reins and wasn't letting go any time soon. She stood, paralysed, watching as the spirit came closer. All she could do was think _'Why is a graveyard Poe out here?'_ Plums shrill whinnie brought her back to her senses and she tried to back away. She tripped over her own feet and fell back onto the grass. Plum whinnied again and tore the reins out of Sayomi's hands, galloping to the far end of the small field, near the stairs to Death Valley. Sayomi could only watch in horror as the Poe kept coming closer and closer until it was towering above her. It reached out a hand, cackling wildly and she closed her eyes, praying for a miracle to come. And soon.

**Authors Note:  
Aah my goodness! Chapter 2 done! Thank you for being so patient everyone ^_^ I'm annoyed that I ended yet another chapter with a Poe attack thingy but I seriously did not know where else to end it suspensfully O.o Meh. I hope you enjoyed it :D Please comment and tell me how it was ^_^**


	4. Chapter 3

Sayomi waited for something to happen. She wasn't quite sure what would happen if a Poe touched you. Maybe all you insides would freeze, or maybe the sensation would be enough to drive you mad or give you nightmares for the rest of your life and become and insomniac. Well, what ever would happen, she knew it wasn't going to be pleasant. But what happened next, she never expected.

Something whizzed past Sayomi's head and the Poe's evil laughter suddenly cut off. Everything was silent and Sayomi opened her eyes. An arrow shaft was protruding out of the Poe's body and it had a shocked look on it's face. Suddenly, it's expression turned to rage and it screamed. The noise was so horrible and high pitched that Sayomi had to cover her ears. It writhed and thrashed in mid-air, clawing at the arrow, trying, in vain, to get it out.

'CURSE YOU!' it spat, glaring at something over Sayomi's shoulder. 'I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!'

As it suddenly burst into flames, the screams got louder and more desperate. Sayomi felt strong hands grab her arms and drag her back, away from the flaming Poe. She didn't try to fight, she just let them take her away, completely frozen, watching in detached fascination as the Poe convulsed and screamed. Finally, the flames engulfed its body and it disappeared. The little lantern that the Poe was holding dropped and smashed on the stone bridge. A small, purple flame appeared where the glass had shattered. It didn't do anything, just flickered slightly in the breeze. Sayomi breathed a sigh of relief, glad it was all over, and looked back at her saviour. Aki stood directly behind her shoulder, a quiver strapped to a sash that looped over his shoulder, down across his chest, around his waist and back up. In his right hand, he was holding a wooden bow with two ruby coloured crystals implanted at both ends of the wood. He was glaring at the small flame, as if he was afraid it would rear up and attack them again. Sayomi cleared her throat and he looked down at her.

'Um,' she started, becoming extremely interested in the grass. 'I just wanted to say...thank you...for saving me...' she said quietly, ripping a leaf apart, not looking at him. When he didn't reply, she looked up slightly, and found him looking away from her and scratching the back of his head, clearly embarrassed. 'Don't...don't mention it.' he finally replied. Sayomi got to her feet and looked around for Plum. 'That was pretty good timing. I mean, if you hadn't come when you did I...I don't know what would have happened.' she said, spotting the horse off near the river that lead to Zora's Fountain.

'What were you doing here any way?' she asked, walking over to retrieve the mare.

'Oh, I was going to Zora's Domain to deliver something.' he explained, following a bit behind her. Plum had calmed down pretty quickly and was grazing so Sayomi had an easy job of checking that everything was alright. She checked her hind legs especially to make sure the cart hadn't scratched her when she ran. Everything was ok so Sayomi took the reins and headed back towards the bridge. Aki jogged on ahead of her to capture the floating flame/spirit in a small glass jar. He twisted the lid on tightly and muttered something to it. 'What are you going to do with that?' Sayomi asked, startling him.

'Oh, um,' he swallowed. 'I'm going to go around and see if anyone wants to buy it off me. There are some strange people around these days.' he said, pocketing the slightly glowing jar.

'Um, well, thanks again.' she said, looking at her feet.

'Ah, yeah well, like I said before, don't mention it.' he replied, looking at his feet too. She nodded and turned away. 'Hey Sayomi?' he called after her. She turned back and he was scratching his head again. 'Uh, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about before. It was really out of line.' he said. She smiled at him. 'It's fine, don't worry about it.' she replied, walking over the bridged to the field on the other side, pulling Plum along with her. She turned around but Aki was already gone. She sighed and looked up at the darkening sky. She closed her eyes and let the cool night air wash over her as she stood there. A lone wolf howled, signalling that it was night-time.

Suddenly, she remembered something. Her stall, her wood. She had forgotten all about them. Dragging Plum with her, Sayomi raced towards Castle Town. The draw bridge hadn't come up yet and she ran across it, her cart clattering over the wooden surface. Before she could completely get over the bridge, a soldier stepped in front of her, bringing her to a halt. 'Unless you are a resident or are staying in Hyrule Castle Town, I will have to ask you to leave. If you _are_ staying here, you will have to show your papers.' the guard announced, standing straight and looking down at her. His helmet darkened his face and his eyes glinted in the light of the flaming torch he was holding. He looked very intimidating and the metal spear he held in his other hand unnerved Sayomi. She took a deep breath and looked at him. 'Please sir, I am a merchant and took part in Market Day today. I have left my stall, goods and profit back in the Market Square and I have come to collect them.' she explained, praying that he'd let her past. The soldier snorted. 'Good luck getting your money back. Some kids have probably take off with it so I doubt you'd have any money to worry about.' he laughed, easing back into what Sayomi thought of as an arrogant slouch, leaning on his spear and crossing one leg over the other. She bristled at his mocking tone but tried to not let it get to her. 'Please,' she begged. 'I need to get my stuff back.' The guard stared at her for a moment then at her cart. 'Do you have a merchants permit?' he asked, looking back at her. She nodded and reached over to her small pack slung across Plums back. She untied it from her saddle and rummaged around a bit before producing a crinkled piece of paper. The guard took it and inspected the writing for a moment. Handing them back to her, he beckoned for her to follow him. She led Plum across the draw bridge as the soldier shouted something to another guard standing next to the bridge. 'Hey you, keep it open for a sec will ya?' he shouted, loosing his formal tone. The guard nodded and smiled at Sayomi. She smiled and nodded politely. The soldier that was with her put his torch in a iron holder on the wall and lead the way. When they got to Market Square, Sayomi headed over to her stand while the soldier waited for her next to the fountain. She checked her money bag. Sure enough, just as he had said, all her rupees were gone. She cursed and stalked angrily towards the wood pile. Something knocked against her foot and she looked down. A single yellow rupee lay on the floor, shining in the moonlight. She thanked the goddesses that at least _some _of her profit survived. As she loaded the logs into her cart, the soldier produced an apple from nowhere and started munching loudly on it. Sayomi tried to ignore him but couldn't deny the ravenous hunger that was building. She hadn't eaten since that morning. Suddenly, her stomach growled loudly, much to her embarrassment. 'Hungry? You want some?' the soldier said, offering a side of the apple.

'No thanks.' she said, lifting more logs into the cart.

'Suit yourself.' he shrugged, taking another bite. 'Hey, why did you leave all your stuff here?' he asked, with his mouth full. She grimaced. _'And I thought soldiers were proper gentlemen.'_ she thought. 'I had to go on a delivery that took longer than I expected.' Sayomi replied, taking down her stall and putting it in the cart along with the wood. 'Well, like my mother always said, 'You gotta prepare for anything. 'Cause you never know what'll happen.'' he said, munching on another bite of apple. She nodded and closed up the back of the cart. Leading Plum through the town, she realised that she had left her money bag. 'Darn, I have to go back to get my-'

'Money bag?' the soldier finished, holding up her brown sack.

'How did you? Never mind. Thanks a bunch.' she said, taking it from him and putting it in her pack.

'No problem,' he said. 'Hey, where did you go on that delivery?' he asked conversationally.

'Death Valley.'

He stopped short and looked at her. 'Death Valley?'

'Um, y-yeah.' she replied, a shiver going through her from the look he was giving her.

'That's a dangerous place to go Little Missy. It'd be best if you don't ever go back there again. The folk there are weird and...strange...things happen there.' he said softly, looking at her straight in the eye.

'What...kind of strange things?' she gulped. The sound of the draw bridge closing interrupted his answer. 'Oi! What do you think you're doing?' he shouted at the guard from before. He stopped pulling the leaver that worked the drawbridge and looked at them. 'Sorry sir, but the Boss says to close it up. And you know how the Boss gets.' he explained.

'Just keep it open until she gets through!' the soldier said. Turning to her, he added. 'Remember what I said and you'll be fine. Now you'll better be off.'

'Um, thank you.' she said to him. He smiled and waved her away. She hurried over the bridge and onto the field. She turned back to wave at him. He waved back and shouted something that she couldn't hear over the sound of the bridge. 'What? I couldn't hear you!' she shouted back. He cupped his hands around his mouth and tried again but she still couldn't hear him. The bridge slowly rose to the top, cutting off her view of him. When it had reached the top, everything fell silent. She waited for a few seconds before shrugging and turning back around, not wanting to waste her breath on something that probably wasn't that important. But a little voice in her head said 'Maybe it was something about Death Valley.' She shivered and pressed next to Plum. Even though she had heard all the stories before, she was still pretty scared. That soldier had said these things in such a serious way. All the tales she heard were all told with a sense of humour, but there was nothing funny when he was saying it. Suddenly, she heard a faint whistling sound and turned to see a arrow thunk into a nearby tree, with something white attached to it. She walked over to it and pulled the white thing off. It was a piece of paper and Sayomi unfolded it to find four words written in a clumsy scroll. They said,

_**'Watch Out For Poes' **_

Later that night, as she went to bed, the events of that day kept replaying in her mind, keeping her up. And those for little words popped up over and over, becoming stuck in her head. '_Watch Out For Poes, Watch Out For Poes, Watch For Poes, Watch For Poes, Watch Poes, Poes, Poes, Poes, Poes, Poes, PoesPoesPoesPoesPoesPOES!'_

__**_*_****Authors Note*  
Ahh! Finally it's done! Thank you for reading this :D And sorry for the overuse of the word 'Poe'...it was for dramatic effect...if it worked :P**


	5. Chapter 4

Sayomi screamed, wrenching herself out of her dream and back into reality. She sat up in bed, clutching her heart.

Uncle Shin snored in the bed on the opposite side of the room, completely unaware and undisturbed. She sighed and flopped back onto her pillow. Closing her eyes, she tried to go back to sleep but flashes of her nightmare behind her lids kept her awake. After a few more fruitless tries, she got up to get herself ready for the day.

Stepping out of the room she shared with her Uncle, she was greeted by the sleepy 'cluck' of a cuckoo. Looking down, she found a fluffy, white ball at her feet.

'Hey there Mochi. Sleeping outside my door again?' she whispered, gently picking up the cuckoo. It's red crest bobbed as it looked up at her and it fluffed up it's already fluffed feathers. She put the cuckoo down and sighed. 'You're not going to go back to sleep until you get fed, am I right?' she asked it. It clucked softly and pecked at her bare feet. 'Ouch! Ok, I get it. I'll take that as a yes.' Sayomi exclaimed, hands on hips. Looking up, she surveyed the room.

The house that she lived in with her Uncle wasn't that big, only having two rooms in the whole building. One room, the bedroom, was upstairs and the other room, which held the kitchen and living room all in one, was downstairs. Her room consisted of two beds, a wardrobe, the dining table, a cupboard and two bedside-tables. At the current moment, she was standing on a small landing, looking down into the lower room. The room was commandeered by half-a-dozen fluffy white cuckoos, all asleep in the corner, but in a moment, Sayomi would lead them outside to graze.

As she walked down the wooden stairs, she wondered, like she did every morning, why her Uncle allowed all these cuckoos to sleep in here. They were good cuckoos really, never made a mess, but they had lost a lot of eggs, from them being laid on the wooden floor and rolling away, ending up being stepping on or cracked.

The cuckoos clucked angrily at her when she woke them up. She stepped quickly away before their sharp beaks could get at her feet. As she herded the sleepy/angry cuckoos out the door, Mochi followed, occasionally greeting another cuckoo with a soft cluck or two.

The sun hadn't yet risen fully yet so the farm was still pretty dark. Sayomi went back inside to light a candle and bring it out with her. She led the cuckoos to a patch of nice green grass with soft clucks and the occasional prodding with her foot at a few stragglers. They immediately went to pecking at the ground, sometimes plucking up a small worm or bug. She left them there and headed over to the barn where all the horses and cattle were. They had quite a few horses, about 8 in total, and only two cows but that was enough.

Sayomi's Uncle didn't actually own the Ranch; a lovely couple had lent it to them when they had no-where to stay when Sayomi's father died and they were kicked out of their old house. The couple were off on holidays at the moment so Sayomi and her Uncle had the Ranch to themselves for a while. They had a few stable hands but they only came in the afternoon to work.

It was wonderfully warm in the barn and the smell of hay and animals soother Sayomi. Most of the animals were still asleep but she was greeted with a soft nicker from Plum and Buttercup. She went over to them to give them a quick pat and some oats for a treat before turning to the cows.

One was awake but the other was fast asleep. Sayomi headed to Bluebell, who mooed softly as she ducked below the wooden bar and stepped into the small space. 'I should really clean your stall, but before that, I think I might as well milk you.' Sayomi said to the creature, reaching for the metal pail and wooden stool that was stored on a shelf above the fodder tray. Setting the equipment down, she got to work.

When she had finished, she packed everything away and took the pail of milk outside. The sky was beginning to lighten up, the first few rays of sun peeking through the mountains in the distance. She took a few moments to close her eyes and just relax in the early morning light. She could hear the cuckoos squawking in the background and the sleepy moo of a cow. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and walked to the house.

When she was inside, she poured the milk into glass bottles with the label 'Lon Ranch Milk' across then. She put the bottles into a wooden crate, ready to be sold. She turned to the cuckoos' nests and picked up the eggs that had been left. Lighting a fire and putting a pot over it, she cracked some of the eggs into the pot to be cooked for breakfast and put the rest into an egg box to be sold as well. She then went upstairs to wake up her Uncle. This was the hard part. Her Uncle had a nasty habit of being extremely grumpy when he had been woken up so she tried to rouse him in the gentlest way she could.

'Uncle….Uncle Shin. It's time to wake up now.' she whispered, lightly poking him in the back. His snores stuttered and he groaned, rolling away from her onto his stomach.

'Uncle Shin! C'mon, you have to get up!' she repeated, gently shaking him this time. He growled and slapped her hand away.

'How dare you disturb me so early in the morning!' he hissed, glaring blearily at her. His voice was muffled by the pillow but it still made Sayomi shiver.

'I'm really sorry Uncle but it's time to get up now,' she said as he moaned and turned his head away from her, trying to get more sleep. 'You have to help me with the horses, and breakfast is almost ready!' she insisted, grabbing his shoulder.

He muttered something and waved her away. 'Ok girl, I get it. I'll get up. Now shoo, I need to get dressed.' he grumbled, not showing any signs of moving.

She sighed and put her hands on her hips. 'Fine, but if you don't come down in 5 minutes, I swear, I will drag you out of that bed myself.' she threatened him.

Turning on her heel, she headed for the door while he mumbled something about giving her a clip on the ear.

As she headed downstairs, she could smell the eggs cooking away in the pot and quickly went to put out the fire. Lifting the heavy pot onto the table, she started getting breakfast ready. By the time she had prepared the plates with egg and some bread, Uncle Shin had managed to drag himself out of bed and gotten himself ready. He came down the wooden stairs, heavily dragging his feet while yawning and scratching his head. 'That smells good girl. What is it?' he asked sleepily, eyeing the dishes hungrily. 'What else? Egg and bread. Do you want some milk with it Uncle?' Sayomi replied, getting some cups. 'It's too early in the morning for milk. Do we have any Ale around ta drink?' he complained, looking around.

'Uncle Shin, you know that's bad for you! You need to have something good and nutritious to drink in the morning. Ale won't help you at all.'

'Ale's got plenty of nutrition thank you very much. It'll help me wake up.'

'No Uncle! Have some water or milk!'

'Don't wanna have any water or milk…' he grumbled, sitting down at the small table. She ignored him and poured him a glass of milk while she had some water. 'Here, it'll be good for your bones.' she told him, setting the cup down in front of him. He complained for a bit about 'never getting any good stuff around here' until he tucked in and started to eat, which shut him up.

The rest of the morning was spent coaxing the horses out into the paddock and cleaning their stalls. Of course, Uncle Shin got out of mucking out their stalls by complaining about his old age and how his back couldn't handle it. Sayomi didn't mind that much as she was used to doing this by herself. The rhythmic movements, the smell and the soft mooing of the cows soothed her.  
Uncle Shin had gone outside to do something with the cuckoos so it was just her and the cows.

After she had done her work, she went outside to try and find her Uncle.

Not surprisingly, Sayomi found him asleep on the back wall of her house, cuckoos everywhere, some in his lap, some inside the paddock with the horses and one was even asleep on his head!  
She went to try and catch the cuckoos in the horses paddock and put them back with the rest but they were too stubborn and ran away from her, flying in short bursts. Of course, cuckoos couldn't fly that well, but nothing stopped them from trying. Eventually she gave up trying and went to sit with Uncle Shin, making sure she didn't scare the cuckoos in his lap or on his head.

She sighed and looked at the sky, wondering what everyone she met the day before was doing. Her mind suddenly shifted to Aki. What was he doing right now? Was he doing more errands for Haku? She shook her head. She shouldn't be thinking of him. Not after how he treated her yesterday.

She saw Mochi pecking at the ground a few feet away from her and tried to persuade him to come to her with some grass. She put the grass in her lap and Mochi, being the greedy little cuckoo he was, clambered right in to get it. She chuckled and started smoothing out his feathers while he sat and pecked at the grass.

She closed her eyes and tried to get some sleep like Uncle Shin. When she was just nodding off, a horse neighed quite close to her and scared the cuckoos. Mochi gave a loud cluck, dug his claws into her legs and ran off. The cuckoos on Uncle Shin did the same and all scrambled after the others.

Sayomi rubbed her scratched legs and looked around for the horse which had disturbed her. She look to the right side of her and found a four brown horse legs in front of her. She looked up into a snort of air and someone laughed.

'Surprise!' Haku said, dismounting. Sayomi slowly got to her feet and rubbed her face.

'Why are you here? You're meant to be working!' she asked.

'Well so are you. In fact, I heard that you're meant to be so busy that you couldn't even come and see me. And yet what do I find? You, asleep on the job.' he teased, ruffling her hair.

She started to retort but Uncle Shin leaped between the two of them. 'Haku my boy! I haven't seen you for a while! How are you my man?' he questioned, pumping Haku's hand up and down furiously.

'Shin! It's great to see you. You look well.'

'Ah, yes! Well, you know it's a skill to age gracefully! Only the best master it' he bragged.

Sayomi rolled her eyes and stepped between the two, breaking the hand shake. 'Uncle, there is nothing graceful about you.' she laughed. He sniffed, turned and walked away stiffly. She laughed and turned back to Haku. 'But seriously, what are you doing here? Don't the builders need you?' she asked him.

'Pfft, builders shmilders, I'm here for you.' he said, stepping forward.

'Haru,' she said disapprovingly. 'They need you.'

'They can handle the site without me. They're not as incompetent as they look.'

She frowned and pushed him lightly. Turning on her heel she started to walk in the general direction of the mill, not looking back to see if he was following. 'So what exactly are you doing here?'

'Can't a man spend some quality time with his fiancé?'

'Not when that man has a whole town to rebuild.'

'Heh, well you got me there.'

Sayomi stopped and turned around. Haru was standing a few feet away from her, hands in his pockets. He was smiling, but it was a sad thing, his eyes looking at the ground. 'Haru? What's wrong?' she asked, stepping towards him. He blinked and shook his head as if snapping out of a daze. Looking up at her he grinned and held out his hand. 'I want to show you something.'

**A.N:**

___Oh man, I'm sorry guys for the long update T_T School is really taking it's toll on me. And you guys waited for so long and you end up getting a really horrible chapter =_= I apologise for this chapter. Hopefully the next one won't be as boring XD But the characters need some down-time people to catch up on sleeping with cuckoos XD_ I'll try and get the next update up soon. I've got holidays comming up XD Yeeeaaaahhhhh!


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